Professional wrestling, often shortened to pro wrestling, is a form of entertainment and performing art, which combines athletics with theatrical performance. It comprises exhibitions presented as legitimate matches, held by companies called promotions, in a style and structure mimicking competitive combat sports. The progress and outcome of matches are planned in advance, typically between consenting performers with established character roles. These matches are based on classical and "catch" wrestling, with modern additions of striking attacks, acrobatics, feats of strength, fast-moving athleticism and occasionally, improvised weaponry. Professional wrestling is not to be confused with the contact sports of amateur wrestling.
World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., commonly shortened to its trade name WWE, is an American professional wrestling promotion. A global entertainment company, WWE has also branched out into other fields, including film, American football, and various other business ventures. The company is additionally involved in licensing its intellectual property to companies to produce video games and action figures.
Dwayne Douglas Johnson, also known by his ring name The Rock, is an American actor, businessman, and former professional wrestler. Widely regarded as one of the greatest professional wrestlers of all time, he wrestled for WWE for eight years prior to pursuing an acting career. His films have grossed over $3.5 billion in North America and over $10.5 billion worldwide, making him one of the world's highest-grossing and highest-paid actors.
Terry Eugene Bollea, better known by his ring name Hulk Hogan, is an American retired professional wrestler and television personality. He is widely regarded as the most recognized wrestling star worldwide and the most popular wrestler of the 1980s.
Paul Michael Levesque is an American business executive, actor, and retired professional wrestler, better known by the ring name Triple H. As of 2022, he is serving as the executive vice president for Global Talent Strategy & Development of WWE and is also executive producer of the NXT brand.
Michael Shawn Hickenbottom, better known by his ring name Shawn Michaels, is an American retired professional wrestler. Widely regarded as one of the greatest professional wrestlers of all time, he is known by the nicknames "Heartbreak Kid", "The Showstopper", and "Mr. WrestleMania".
Richard Morgan Fliehr, known professionally as Ric Flair, is an American retired professional wrestler. Regarded by multiple peers and journalists as the greatest professional wrestler of all time, Flair had a career that spanned almost 40 years.
Mark William Calaway, better known by the ring name The Undertaker is an American retired professional wrestler. Widely regarded as one of the greatest professional wrestlers of all time, Calaway spent the vast majority of his career wrestling for WWF/E, and is best known for his critically acclaimed "Deadman" Undertaker gimmick, for which he was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2022. Calaway remains employed for WWE through a 15-year contract signed in 2019.
John Felix Anthony Cena is an American professional wrestler, actor, and former rapper, currently signed to WWE. Widely regarded as one of the greatest professional wrestlers of all time, he is tied with Ric Flair for the most world championship reigns in professional wrestling history.
Steve Austin, better known by his ring name "Stone Cold" Steve Austin, is an American television host, media personality, actor, producer, and retired professional wrestler. Widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential professional wrestlers of all time, he was integral to the development and success of the WWF during the Attitude Era, an industry boom period in the late 1990s and early 2000s.
Scott Oliver Hall was an American professional wrestler. He was best known for his tenures with the World Wrestling Federation under the ring name Razor Ramon and with World Championship Wrestling (WCW) under his real name.
Impact Wrestling is an American professional wrestling promotion based in Nashville, Tennessee. It is a subsidiary of Anthem Sports & Entertainment.
WWE Backlash, known as WrestleMania Backlash since 2021, is a professional wrestling event that is produced by WWE, a professional wrestling promotion based in Connecticut. It is broadcast live and available only through pay-per-view (PPV) and the online streaming services Peacock and the WWE Network. The event was established in 1999 and was the first monthly PPV held after the discontinuation of the original In Your House shows, which were monthly PPVs held between the promotion's "Big Five" PPVs at the time: Royal Rumble, WrestleMania, King of the Ring, SummerSlam, and Survivor Series. The inaugural Backlash had been originally advertised as an In Your House show, but the branding was dropped before the event took place.
Wrestling is a combat sport involving grappling-type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint locks, pins and other grappling holds. The sport can either be genuinely competitive or sportive entertainment. Wrestling comes in different forms such as freestyle, Greco-Roman, judo, sambo, folkstyle, catch, submission, sumo, pehlwani, shuai jiao and others. A wrestling bout is a physical competition, between two competitors or sparring partners, who attempt to gain and maintain a superior position. There are a wide range of styles with varying rules, with both traditional historic and modern styles. Wrestling techniques have been incorporated into other martial arts as well as military hand-to-hand combat systems. The term wrestling is attested in late Old English, as wræstlunge.
Ring of Honor Wrestling Entertainment, LLC, operating as Ring of Honor (ROH), is an American professional wrestling promotion based in Jacksonville, Florida. The promotion was founded by Rob Feinstein on February 23, 2002, and was operated by Cary Silkin from 2004 until 2011, when the promotion was sold to the Sinclair Broadcast Group. In March 2022, ROH was sold to All Elite Wrestling (AEW) founder, co-owner, president, and CEO Tony Khan separately from AEW.
Virgil Riley Runnels Jr., better known as "The American Dream" Dusty Rhodes, was an American professional wrestler, booker, and trainer who most notably worked for the National Wrestling Alliance, Jim Crockett Promotions, and the World Wrestling Federation, later known as the WWE. Rhodes is considered one of the greatest wrestlers and talkers in the history of professional wrestling.
Professional wrestling has accrued a considerable amount of jargon throughout its existence. Much of it stems from the industry's origins in the days of carnivals and circuses. In the past, professional wrestlers used such terms in the presence of fans so as not to reveal the worked nature of the business. In recent years, widespread discussion on the Internet has popularized these terms. Many of the terms refer to the financial aspects of professional wrestling in addition to in-ring terms.
Cody Garrett Runnels Rhodes is an American professional wrestler and actor. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw brand. He is also known for his time in All Elite Wrestling (AEW), where he was the inaugural and record three-time AEW TNT Champion and also served as an executive vice president.
All Elite Wrestling, commonly shortened to AEW, is an American professional wrestling promotion based in Jacksonville, Florida.